The Bagpiper by Robert Charles Bell, after a painting by Sir David Wilkie, 19th century. Dayton C. Miller Collection, Music Division, Library of Congress.

after a painting by Sir David Wilkie, painter and etcher, 1785-1841

This beautifully executed engraving is a half-length portrait of a bagpiper wearing a rounded hat, white shirt, loosely tied cravat, and a jacket. There is a leather strap over his left shoulder and he holds bagpipes under his left arm (on viewer's right). These are known as Border bagpipes, or Lowland bagpipes, or Half-long bagpipes.[1] A building is in the left background, but the background is not detailed otherwise. This print was included in The Pipers: An Exhibition of Engravings, Watercolors and Lithographs from the Dayton C. Miller Collection, Library of Congress, March 1977.

About the Artists

Robert Charles Bell, engraver, 1806-1872
Robert Charles Bell was an engraver who was born in Edinburgh in 1806 and he died in 1872, according to Bénézit. He was a student of John Beugho, or Beugo (1759-1841), also from Edinburgh, an engraver and friend of the poet, Robert Burns. Bell also studied at the Trustees Academy in Edinburgh. He made engravings after the paintings of Sir William Allan (1782-1850), a history and genre painter, and Fraser (probably Alexander Fraser, the elder, 1786-1865). Bell provided many engraved illustrations for the Art Journal after the works of Mulready (probably William Mulready, 1786-1863), an Irish genre painter; and, after the work of Sir David Wilkie.

Sir David Wilkie, painter and etcher, 1785-1841
Sir David Wilkie was a renowned Scottish artist. He was born in Cults, near Fife, in 1785, and he died at sea near Malta on a return voyage home from the Holy Land in 1841. His father was a Protestant minister, Rev. David Wilkie. He began his art studies in Edinburgh at age 14 at the Trustees Academy. In 1805, he went to London and enrolled in the school of the Royal Academy. He began to exhibit his work at the Royal Academy in 1806, and continued to send his work there through 1842. From his first entry at the Royal Academy, Village Politicians, in 1806, he was a great success and his work was widely praised. Sir George Beaumont, the founder of the National Gallery, was one of his earliest patrons. His early works were genre subjects, much in the manner of 17th-century Dutch painters such as David Teniers (1610-1690). Wilkie's style matured after 1813 and continued to change, especially after his travels to France in 1814 and 1821, the Low Countries in 1816, and Italy, Germany and Austria in the 1820s, where he studied the works of Rembrandt, Titian, Rubens, Raphael, and Correggio. In the late 1820s and mid-1830s, he exhibited his work frequently at the Royal Academy in London. Among his patrons was King George IV, who purchased several of Wilkie's paintings. In 1830, he succeeded Sir Thomas Lawrence as Painter in Ordinary to the King. In 1840, he traveled extensively in the Middle East. In 1841, on the way to Gilbraltar, he died aboard ship and was buried at sea. Wilkie was a prolific painter and draughtsman.[2]

Notes

1. The information about the type of bagpipes the piper plays is courtesy of Jon Swayne, via Robert Bigio, London, 12 April 2007. [back to article]
2. See Bénézit for a list of his major works. For a more in-depth study of Wilkie's life and work and suggestions for further reading, see the following two articles: 1) Hamish Miles, "Sir David Wilkie," in Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online; and, 2) David Rogers, "Sir David Wilkie," in the Oxford Companion to Western Art, also available via Oxford Art Online (both by subscription only). [back to article]